TOUGHING

Verb

toughing

present participle of tough

Source: Wiktionary


TOUGH

Tough, a. [Compar. Tougher; superl. Toughest.] Etym: [OE. tough, AS. toh, akin to D. taai, LG. taa, tage, tau, OHG. zahi, G. zähe, and also to AS. getenge near to, close to, oppressive, OS. bitengi.]

1. Having the quality of flexibility without brittleness; yielding to force without breaking; capable of resisting great strain; as, the ligaments of animals are remarkably tough. "Tough roots and stubs. " Milton.

2. Not easily broken; able to endure hardship; firm; strong; as, tough sinews. Cowper. A body made of brass, the crone demands, . . . Tough to the last, and with no toil to tire. Dryden. The basis of his character was caution combined with tough tenacity of purpose. J. A. Symonds.

3. Not easily separated; viscous; clammy; tenacious; as, tough phlegm.

4. Stiff; rigid; not flexible; stubborn; as, a tough bow. So tough a frame she could not bend. Dryden.

5. Severe; violent; as, a tough storm. [Colloq.] " A tough debate. " Fuller. To make it tough, to make it a matter of difficulty; to make it a hard matter. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

8 January 2025

SYCAMORE

(noun) Eurasian maple tree with pale grey bark that peels in flakes like that of a sycamore tree; leaves with five ovate lobes yellow in autumn


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Coffee Trivia

The first coffee-house in Mecca dates back to the 1510s. The beverage was in Turkey by the 1530s. It appeared in Europe circa 1515-1519 and was introduced to England by 1650. By 1675 the country had more than 3,000 coffee houses, and coffee had replaced beer as a breakfast drink.

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